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News, views and musings from the Adobe UK team

We know mobile is developing at an unprecedented rate and last week was no exception, with mobile stories filling the news. We’ve chosen four of the best highlighting the advances in the industry.

The Guardian recently blogged about how mobile phones are changing the world of retail at a remarkable speed. According to the IMRG Capgemini m-Retail Index, m-commerce experienced a whopping 359% year-on-year increase in May and is only set to grow as the sale of tablet devices continues to drive the electronics market. We know the tides are turning in retail and only time will tell who will flourish in this new era.

Last Friday, Orange announced the first large-scale rollout of a SIM-based NFC solution to enable NFC-readiness for mass deployment of mobile contactless services – the first operator in Europe to do this at a national scale. The days of carrying small change could be on the way out as another step is taken towards the future of wireless communication.

Finally, finishing on a futuristic note, a Japanese collaboration recently presented an OLED screen that allows users to use both sides of the surface at the same time. This transparent two-sided touchscreen could be the future of Smartphones. There’s a video on the website for a more in-depth look at this innovative new technology.

The future is digital and mobile is a big part of this. As mobile devices continue to evolve, it’s an exciting time!

As the digital revolution continues, it appears that so does our love and need for gadgets. So much in fact, that we don’t only want the latest devices but we also want to use them all at the same time. Whilst in the past we may have been content just watching the TV, increasingly people are finding themselves also sitting there with a smartphone in their hand chatting to their friends online or gazing at sites on their tablet – and, more often than not, all three at once.

This is what a recent Multi-Screen Marketer report from Econsultancy (@Econsultancy) found, with over half of the respondents answering that they were either somewhat or very likely to be using another device when watching TV. Interestingly, this rises with every screen added to the mix, with 65% of those with four devices saying that multi-device use is the norm while watching TV.

Increasingly consumers are finding themselves multi-tasking with multi-screens whether it’s in front of the TV, on a PC, laptop, tablet, smartphone or any other device – and brands need to recognise that the way consumers engage with products has changed.

The multi-screen trend has been around for years now and is gaining pace with the recent launch of Xbox SmartGlass among other devices. With more and more new products being created, the number of devices people own is picking up and is only expected to increase as more models come in to the market.

The culture is changing and as the demand for instant information, communication and gamification continues to rise, brands need to make sure they are listening to stay ahead of the curve. In the future, multiple screens will be the norm.

Get involved with the conversation by tweeting us @AdobeUK and using #FutureOfDigital. Read more about how Adobe can help with digital publishing here.

We’re always keeping an eye on the latest digital developments, and this week kicked off with four stories that highlight just how quickly the digital revolution is progressing.

We start off in one of the last bastions of the non-digital: the bookshop. The neatly stacked shelves holding row upon row of reading material, the well-read staff, the quietly intellectual atmosphere. And now, in recognition of e-readers, a dedicated digital area and free wi-fi access. At least that’s the case in Waterstones, which is going to sell Amazon’s Kindle book reader. Waterstones is embracing digital while it seems Amazon is getting a slice of the high-street audience.

Looking even further into the future, it appears that 3D gesture control technology is starting to go mainstream. The FT has blogged about the launch of a new gesture-control device that allows touch-typing or even playing a piano in the air. In the future, the FT says that finger and hand movements could reduce the need for a keyboard, mouse or touchscreen.

Are you a student? Do you know a student? Then this is for you! To celebrate the launch of Adobe CS6 and Adobe Creative Cloud we have some great gadgets and other prizes up for grabs, including a 15” MacBook Pro with our Adobe Creative Suite 6 Master Collection, a Samsung Galaxy Tablet complete with the Adobe Touch Apps including the award winning Adobe Photoshop Touch and a whole bunch more.

The competition is open to any UK student (with valid student ID) and to win all you need to do is head over to Adobe Students UK on Facebook and try your hand at our Seeing Double game! The fastest player each day to match all eight pairs of CS6 faces will win!